IN THIS ISSUE

Reporting, Analyses & Commentary

• US, Saudis Agree on Use of Bases - Report
• Saudi Arabia Denies Deal on Use of Bases
• No New Resolution, No Support: Kingdom
• U.S. Deluding Itself Over Iraq: Saud
• Expat Exodus Under Way
• Jittery Saudis Must Deal With More Crime
• Kingdom Boosts Strategic Oil Storage Capacity
• Fire Force Ready
• Saudi Businessmen Shy Away From US, Eye Options Elsewhere
• Editorial: Reforms and Charters
• National Geographic Seeks to Present True Image of Kingdom to West

REPORTING, ANALYSES & COMMENTARY 
...background and context on current developments...

SAUDI ARABIA DENIES DEAL ON USE OF BASES
"Saudi Arabia dismissed yesterday a media report that the kingdom had agreed to allow U.S. troops and planes based on its soil to take part in any war on neighboring Iraq… …Saudi Arabia, a key launch pad for the 1991 U.S.-led war that ended Iraq's occupation of Kuwait, has repeatedly said it would not allow its ally Washington to again attack Iraq from its territory without U.N. approval…" Complete report…

NO NEW RESOLUTION, NO SUPPORT: KINGDOM
"The Kingdom's ambassador to Britain [Feb. 27] told BBC that Saudi Arabia will not support a US-led war in Iraq in the absence of a second United Nations resolution explicitly permitting the use of force… … Prince Turki Al-Faisal said that even with a second UN resolution, Arab countries would try to talk Saddam Hussein into reason. He said once any war is over, Saudi Arabia will open talks on US troop withdrawal…"  [Expired Link]

US DELUDING ITSELF OVER IRAQ: SAUD
"The United States is deluding itself if it thinks it can control Iraq after a second Gulf war… …Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said [Feb. 26]… …'Iraq is a people, a country, a civilization, a history, and its people will not tolerate any external control,'…"  [Expired Link]

EXPAT EXODUS UNDER WAY
"…the exodus of British and American nationals and their dependents has begun… … Compound staff in Jeddah refused to comment on the record… …But one, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that numerous families were now planning to go…" [Expired link]

JITTERY SAUDIS MUST DEAL WITH MORE CRIME
"A Briton shot dead at a traffic light. Another mugged and almost killed. A busload of Egyptian and Filipino doctors and nurses under fire. A deputy governor assassinated. For Saudis who pride themselves on their low crime rate, this month has been anything but calm. Muslim extremism? Tribal disputes? Just ordinary crime? The secretive Saudi government is saying very little…"  [Expired Link]

KINGDOM BOOSTS STRATEGIC OIL STORAGE CAPACITY
"Saudi Arabia has boosted its strategic storage capacity for oil products to several million barrels after opening a new underground facility in the south of the country… …the storage facilities were constructed under an SR11 billion Saudi Strategic Storage Program aimed at ensuring supplies during wartime…"  [Expired Link]

FIRE FORCE READY
"Saudi Arabia has readied a massive force of 15,000 men to counter possible fires at the country's oil fields and installations…"  [Expired Link]

SAUDI BUSINESSMEN SHY AWAY FROM US, EYE OPTIONS ELSEWHERE
"Business leaders warn some colleagues have already started to shy away from the United States, dismayed by virulent US media criticism of their country after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and tough new visa regulations… …Saudis say that while existing business partnerships will remain because of strong personal relationships and loyalties, people will look elsewhere when they start new businesses…"  [Expired Link]

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In mid-January, Crown Prince Abdullah unveiled a Charter to Reform the Arab Stand. Designed to strengthen the Arab position (as opposed to a GCC position or even the mere Saudi position) in the wider world, it envisages substantial reforms across the Arab world — political, social and economic — including greater political participation. Only through such change, the crown prince believes, can the Arab nation develop and grow, and in doing so have a more effective voice on the world stage.

A little over three weeks ago, he met with a group of Saudi reformists representing 120 intellectuals and academics who had signed a petition calling for radical, extensive reforms within the Kingdom. They include elections to the Shoura Council, envisaged as a lawmaking legislature; universal suffrage; the independence of the judiciary; the right of women to pursue roles in public life; elected municipal councils; the right of free association and the right to set up civil organizations, such as trades unions or clubs; freedom of speech; the monitoring of public spending; the eradication of the national debt; the strengthening and diversification of the economy so as to withstand foreign takeovers.

For some Saudis, the concept of a civil society encapsulated by these ideas may seem wholly alien. But these are not new, foreign or un-Islamic ideas. After the death of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the first Caliph, Abubakar, was elected by his companions. At the time, they were the Muslim community.

Whether or not all the reformists’ proposals become law, the crown prince and the rest of the government are fully in tune with the need for reform. They know, as we all do, that Saudi Arabia has grown into too vast, too complex an economy and society for only a small group of people, no matter how skilled, to make all the decisions. It is an impossible burden. Just as there has to be diversification of the economy if it is to grow, so too there has to be diversification in decision-making and in responsibility if administration is not to be crushed under the sheer weight of the workload.

The Kingdom is evolving. The privatization of 20 of the country’s sectors of economic activity announced last November is probably the most high-profile example of change, but it is happening elsewhere — not with great trumpet blasts, but quietly, often without people noticing it. One example is the media. It is very different from that of a decade ago, even just three years ago. Contentious issues and criticism are now an increasing feature of the Saudi press. Two examples of change were in yesterday’s Arab News. The Shoura Council wants to discuss the changes proposed in the reform petition, and Saudi journalists are to get their own trade association. This is change in action.

Anyone who thinks that Saudi Arabia cannot change and develop is deaf and blind. There is probably no country on earth that has changed so much in the past 30 years. It has changed almost beyond recognition. It is not just a question of buildings and infrastructure. This is a visibly different society to what it was before the oil boom.

Change is part of human existence. If there is one lesson from history about human society, it is that nothing stays the same. Change will continue to happen in Saudi Arabia. Without it, there can only be stagnation.

National Geographic Seeks to Present True Image of Kingdom to West

Frank Firyano, a journalist with the well-known US magazine National Geographic, recently visited Al-Ola province within the framework of his visit to the Kingdom, to file a lengthy report on the Kingdom’s history, culture, archeological sites, tourism, social life and other aspects. The report was aimed at upgrading the awareness of the Americans and the world in general on the Kingdom and correcting the wrong image of the Saudi society in the American and Western societies. Firyano was accompanied by the Iranian-French photographer Mohammed Riza Deeghati. He told Al-Riyadh Arabic newspaper, sister publication of Riyadh Daily, that his visit to the Kingdom came in line with the keenness of the magazine to reflect the true image of the Kingdom as the Western world knows little about the Kingdom.

He pointed out that the reports in Western media about the Kingdom and that it was a “terrorist state” were mere “lies”. “I’m living between Italy and France, I flourished in America and lived 20 years moving in Asia but I didn’t find a people who speak about themselves and respect others like the Saudis,” he indicated. Speaking about Al-Ola and Maden Saleh, Firyano said that the area was one of the important tourism sites in the world. Asked about the role of the media in correcting the Kingdom’s image in the Western societies, the journalist explained that the visits of foreign journalists and tourists would lead to conveying a sincere and true picture about the Kingdom and its people.

Source: Riyadh Daily